On Wed, May 12, 2021 at 6:26 PM spencer@...
<spencer@...> wrote:

holder could be more rigid but not without a lot of work basically
redoing the whole 4th axis. i did get it tighter increasing the pressure
on the air vise and using a sandpaper strip to help hold the block.
improved finish a little.

i am cutting wood, i have no problem with metal or plastic. wood is a
bitch. i ordered some better cutters and will see what they do.

Check the place you're ordering from - - - they might offer some
parameters.

You can't really do light cuts in wood (like a 'spring cut' in metal) because it'll splinter etc, maybe that's what was happening so the deeper cut from the higher feed rate helps with that.

You could always put the feed rate back to what it was and crank up the cutter speed and see what it does, if only for your own amusement.

Tony

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of
spencer@...
Sent: Thursday, 13 May 2021 5:36 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [MachCNC] is this possible

I am getting really tired of making the same parts i have been making for 7
years. the only fun is making improvements. So I decided to work on my
gcode and clean it up and optimize tool motion. gets a little scary when i get
close to a fixture but i managed with no crashes.

I was previously (last many years) using various feed speeds and then using
feed override to get the speeds i really wanted. it has taken years to fine
tune the speeds to deal with varying grain etc etc.

BTW, running mach4 with ESS

So i changed every F command to double what it was and ran the program.
I think i notice a significant improvement in finish. Specifically i was getting
long wood fiber threads on the top surfaces (upcutter but ordered a bunch
of other bits to try including expensive ones by Vortex.

This makes no sense to me but i have only cut 10 parts. Usually 5 are OK and
then one has some strange grain pattern in it and it comes out stringy but
after doubling the speeds (still that same speed in the end because i use FRO
of 100%) i have not had a stringy part and the finish elsewhere looks better?

Am i hallucinating?

Best regards, Spencer Chase
67550 Bell Springs Rd.
Garberville, CA 95542 Postal service only.
Laytonville, CA 95454 UPS only.
Spencer@...


(425) 791-0309

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of
spencer@...
Sent: Thursday, 13 May 2021 5:36 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [MachCNC] is this possible

I am getting really tired of making the same parts i have been making for 7
years. the only fun is making improvements. So I decided to work on my
gcode and clean it up and optimize tool motion. gets a little scary when i get
close to a fixture but i managed with no crashes.

I was previously (last many years) using various feed speeds and then using
feed override to get the speeds i really wanted. it has taken years to fine
tune the speeds to deal with varying grain etc etc.

BTW, running mach4 with ESS

So i changed every F command to double what it was and ran the program.
I think i notice a significant improvement in finish. Specifically i was getting
long wood fiber threads on the top surfaces (upcutter but ordered a bunch
of other bits to try including expensive ones by Vortex.

This makes no sense to me but i have only cut 10 parts. Usually 5 are OK and
then one has some strange grain pattern in it and it comes out stringy but
after doubling the speeds (still that same speed in the end because i use FRO
of 100%) i have not had a stringy part and the finish elsewhere looks better?

Am i hallucinating?

Best regards, Spencer Chase
67550 Bell Springs Rd.
Garberville, CA 95542 Postal service only.
Laytonville, CA 95454 UPS only.
Spencer@...


(425) 791-0309

On Wed, May 12, 2021 at 2:48 PM spencer@...
<spencer@...> wrote:

I am getting really tired of making the same parts i have been making
for 7 years. the only fun is making improvements. So I decided to work
on my gcode and clean it up and optimize tool motion. gets a little
scary when i get close to a fixture but i managed with no crashes.

I was previously (last many years) using various feed speeds and then
using feed override to get the speeds i really wanted. it has taken
years to fine tune the speeds to deal with varying grain etc etc.

BTW, running mach4 with ESS

So i changed every F command to double what it was and ran the program.
I think i notice a significant improvement in finish. Specifically i was
getting long wood fiber threads on the top surfaces (upcutter but
ordered a bunch of other bits to try including expensive ones by Vortex.

This makes no sense to me but i have only cut 10 parts. Usually 5 are OK
and then one has some strange grain pattern in it and it comes out
stringy but after doubling the speeds (still that same speed in the end
because i use FRO of 100%) i have not had a stringy part and the finish
elsewhere looks better?

Am i hallucinating?

Quite likely -- - - nope!

A high quality cutter has a sweet spot for usage - - - - you're cutting wood
by the sound of it so I've got no ideas as to speeds/feeds. If you were
asking for metals - - - - I'd have some suggestions.

There are cutters out there that deliver scary results - - - - think
like liters of
Aluminum chip in no time flat - - - - takes some serious power and
rigidity but doable. Are many people using this level of production - - - nope!

So - - - - what are you cutting?
How rigid is your workholding/machine?

More later!

HTH

The installer should have asked if you wanted an icon on the desktop. If not I guess you should look in the windows start menu.

ron ginger


On 5/12/2021 12:12 PM, spencer@... wrote:

I installed the wizards and the process seemed to complete but nothing shows up in the recently added programs list and i can not find the newly installed programs anywhere? Any hints?

On 5/12/2021 4:54 AM, Ron Ginger wrote:

On 5/12/2021 12:31 AM, spencer@... wrote:

i installed the wizards, where do i access them?

They are a separate program you cannot call them from Mach. But you can transfer the gcode directly into mach.

We made them a separate program so they could be used with other controllers- even linnuxcnc, or Mach3. I was careful to generate very basic gcode so they should be controller independent.

ron ginger

I installed the wizards and the process seemed to complete but nothing shows up in the recently added programs list and i can not find the newly installed programs anywhere? Any hints?
On 5/12/2021 4:54 AM, Ron Ginger wrote:

On 5/12/2021 12:31 AM, spencer@... wrote:

i installed the wizards, where do i access them?

They are a separate program you cannot call them from Mach. But you can transfer the gcode directly into mach.

We made them a separate program so they could be used with other controllers- even linnuxcnc, or Mach3. I was careful to generate very basic gcode so they should be controller independent.

ron ginger

?

So I built up a Little Machine Shops minilathe with Mach4 and PoKeys57 ala the Techshops design put together by Joe Katona and Ron Ginger.

Works pretty good for small stuff. Minlathe needs physical tweaking and greater rigidity. I have an Enco 13X40 geared head lathe as well where I am doing more single point threading all the time and needing to do some larger diameter tapered threads. The minilathe just does not have the low end torque. So I keep looking at the mini Vs. the 13x40 and thinking about ball screws retrofitted to the the 13x40.

My concerns and thoughts;
If I retrofit with ball screws, I am under the impression that I would not be able to use the lathe in the old fashioned mode. The ball screws would allow the cross slide or carriage to move too freely or run away under pressure. Make sense?

If I replace the carriage lead screw, which one? The one for turning or threading. I could just disengage the quick change gear box. But the feed rate chart would have to be recalculated.

Other thoughts or concerns? Another lathe is out of the question.

Thought about getting a small X Y table and mount to the cross slide.

Thanks,

Dale Grice

On 05/12/2021 4:15 PM Dale Grice <dfgrice@...> wrote:

?

?

So I built up a Little Machine Shops minilathe with Mach4 and PoKeys57 ala the Techshops design put together by Joe Katona and Ron Ginger.

Works pretty good for small stuff. Minlathe needs physical tweaking and greater rigidity. I have an Enco 13X40 geared head lathe as well where I am doing more single point threading all the time and needing to do some larger diameter tapered threads. The minilathe just does not have the low end torque. So I keep looking at the mini Vs. the 13x40 and thinking about ball screws retrofitted to the the 13x40.

My concerns and thoughts;
If I retrofit with ball screws, I am under the impression that I would not be able to use the lathe in the old fashioned mode. The ball screws would allow the cross slide or carriage to move too freely or run away under pressure. Make sense?

If I replace the carriage lead screw, which one? The one for turning or threading. I could just disengage the quick change gear box. But the feed rate chart would have to be recalculated.

Other thoughts or concerns? Another lathe is out of the question.

Thought about getting a small X Y table and mount to the cross slide.

Thanks,

Dale Grice

On 5/12/2021 12:31 AM, spencer@... wrote:

i installed the wizards, where do i access them?

They are a separate program you cannot call them from Mach. But you can transfer the gcode directly into mach.

We made them a separate program so they could be used with other controllers- even linnuxcnc, or Mach3. I was careful to generate very basic gcode so they should be controller independent.

ron ginger

i have a license and expected the wizards to show up in the wizard tab, did not know i needed to download them. will try that.

On 5/11/2021 3:54 PM, Ron Ginger wrote:

I am speaking about the Mach4 wizards. They can be downloadd from the Mach site, machsupport.com. They run in demo mode without a license, you can use it all and create job file, but you cannot save gcode.

The menu buttons are down the right side of the window.

ron ginger

On 5/11/2021 6:39 PM, spencer@... wrote:

i looked around and could not find the wizards for circular pockets etc. cam bam is a little non intuitive so it takes a few minutes remembering the tool chain process.

i would love to use the mach4 wiz if i can find it?

On 5/11/2021 2:40 PM, Ron Ginger wrote:

There are wizards in the Mach4 set that do circular pockets, rectangular pockets and 'dog bone' or link pockets.

The wizards also save a job file, so you could create the job file with one size tool, save the gcode, change the tool selections and save the gcode again. One job would create many gcode files.

ron ginger


On 5/11/2021 3:43 PM, spencer@... wrote:

I am looking for a simple solution. I am using a 1/4" router bit to cut slots d shaped pockets and holes i would like to use a bigger cutter for various reasons. especially for testing i would like to do as little reprogramming as possible.

i have read about cutter compensation but can not make sense of it. is there a way to apply a cutter compensation and switch to a 3/8" bit and make the same sized slots holes pockets etc. Do i need to turn compensation on and off for each arc of a circle, for example or can i just make a 3/8" bit behave like a 1/4"? there are no features with a minimum inside dimension of less than 3/8"

I am speaking about the Mach4 wizards. They can be downloadd from the Mach site, machsupport.com. They run in demo mode without a license, you can use it all and create job file, but you cannot save gcode.

The menu buttons are down the right side of the window.

ron ginger

On 5/11/2021 6:39 PM, spencer@... wrote:

i looked around and could not find the wizards for circular pockets etc. cam bam is a little non intuitive so it takes a few minutes remembering the tool chain process.

i would love to use the mach4 wiz if i can find it?

On 5/11/2021 2:40 PM, Ron Ginger wrote:

There are wizards in the Mach4 set that do circular pockets, rectangular pockets and 'dog bone' or link pockets.

The wizards also save a job file, so you could create the job file with one size tool, save the gcode, change the tool selections and save the gcode again. One job would create many gcode files.

ron ginger


On 5/11/2021 3:43 PM, spencer@... wrote:

I am looking for a simple solution. I am using a 1/4" router bit to cut slots d shaped pockets and holes i would like to use a bigger cutter for various reasons. especially for testing i would like to do as little reprogramming as possible.

i have read about cutter compensation but can not make sense of it. is there a way to apply a cutter compensation and switch to a 3/8" bit and make the same sized slots holes pockets etc. Do i need to turn compensation on and off for each arc of a circle, for example or can i just make a 3/8" bit behave like a 1/4"? there are no features with a minimum inside dimension of less than 3/8"

i looked around and could not find the wizards for circular pockets etc. cam bam is a little non intuitive so it takes a few minutes remembering the tool chain process.
i would love to use the mach4 wiz if i can find it?
On 5/11/2021 2:40 PM, Ron Ginger wrote:

There are wizards in the Mach4 set that do circular pockets, rectangular pockets and 'dog bone' or link pockets.

The wizards also save a job file, so you could create the job file with one size tool, save the gcode, change the tool selections and save the gcode again. One job would create many gcode files.

ron ginger


On 5/11/2021 3:43 PM, spencer@... wrote:

I am looking for a simple solution. I am using a 1/4" router bit to cut slots d shaped pockets and holes i would like to use a bigger cutter for various reasons. especially for testing i would like to do as little reprogramming as possible.

i have read about cutter compensation but can not make sense of it. is there a way to apply a cutter compensation and switch to a 3/8" bit and make the same sized slots holes pockets etc. Do i need to turn compensation on and off for each arc of a circle, for example or can i just make a 3/8" bit behave like a 1/4"? there are no features with a minimum inside dimension of less than 3/8"